Stroszek

Bruno Stroszek is released from prison in West Berlin, and a warning to curb his drinking follows him. He goes to a familiar bar where he meets Eva, a down-on-her-luck prostitute, and invites her to stay in the apartment his landlord kept for him. Their fragile companionship is shattered when Eva's former pimps ambush them, insult Bruno, tear his accordion apart, and force him to kneel on his grand piano with bells balanced on his back.

Facing further harassment, Bruno and Eva decide to leave Germany and accompany their eccentric neighbor Scheitz, who plans to move to Wisconsin to live with his American nephew Clayton. The trio departs West Berlin and travels by road, with Scheitz providing eccentric humor along the way. After a stop for sightseeing in New York City, they buy a used car and press on toward the Midwest.

The trio stops in New York City for sightseeing as part of their cross-country dash toward the Midwest. They soak in the urban atmosphere and seize some freedoms that feel almost comic after their Berlin constraints. After the city visit, they purchase a used car to continue the journey.

They arrive in a winter-bound, barren prairie near the town of Railroad Flats. Bruno starts work as a mechanic for Clayton and his assistant, while Eva finds work as a waitress at a truck stop. Scheitz pursues his odd interest in animal magnetism, adding another layer of eccentricity to their struggling household.

With mounting bills, Bruno and Eva buy a mobile home and set it on Clayton's land in the hope of stability. The bank threatens to repossess the home, tightening the noose around their finances. Eva returns to prostitution to supplement her wages, and she eventually leaves Bruno for a ride with truckers bound for Vancouver.

A collection agent visits Bruno, who has fallen into heavy drinking, and he is forced to release the home for auction. Scheitz grows convinced that a conspiracy is against them, and the two decide to confront it directly, despite their wavering nerves. The escalating tension pushes them further toward reckless decisions.

Scheitz and Bruno set out to confront the alleged forces working against them, planning a bold, if misguided, strike. They move through the town as their plan escalates from frustration to reckless action, dragging Bruno deeper into despair. The mood shifts from grim determination to dark, almost absurd inevitability.

They attempt to rob the bank, but it is closed, so they improvise by holding up the barber shop beneath it instead. With a few dollars taken, they head across the street for groceries. The police arrive, arrest Scheitz, and Bruno remains unseen, slipping away during the chaos.

Bruno returns to the garage where he works, loading the tow truck with beer and driving off along a highway toward the mountains. He clutches a frozen turkey and a shotgun as he heads into the unknown, appearing to seek some final freedom or escape. The night closes in around him as the landscape blurs into memory.

Bruno pulls over in a mountain town and tells a German-speaking businessman at a restaurant the story of his life. He restarts the truck and leaves it idling as a fire starts in the engine compartment. He then moves across the street to a roadside attraction and activates the coin-operated animal exhibits.

Bruno switches on a chairlift and rides it with his frozen turkey, looping up and down the mountainside as the truck burns in the distance. He disappears from view after the ride, leaving the fate of his body uncertain. The sequence blends revelry with looming catastrophe.

Police arrive to find the truck fully ablaze, with Bruno's body still on the chairlift and animals performing nonstop in the roadside attraction. The film ends with footage of a dancing chicken and other animals, leaving Bruno’s fate as a haunting, absurd capstone to his life.